Leaders of An Giang have planned to turn the province into the main tourism centre of the Mekong Delta by capitalising on its potential.

By diversifying tourism products, upgrading infrastructure and training human resources, in 2014, the province hopes to attract 5.8 million local and foreign tourists, a growth of 2 percent against 2013.

According to provincial authorities, religion-related tourism is among the new angles they are hoping to maximise.

As part of this, tourists will visit Cam and Sam mountains, Mother Goddess Temple, and take part in traditional ox racing held annually by the local Khmer ethnic groups.

The province also plans to build a Chau Doc entertainment complex and Cam Mountain site aimed at medical tourism with cool weather on the mountain, similar to the well-known Da Lat resort city in the Central Highlands.

Meanwhile the Tra Su cajuput forest will focus on eco-tourism, with activities including fishing and boating through the forest in addition to visits to historical sites.

Alongside this, the canvas-weaving craft villages of the Cham ethnic groups will also be restored.

Famers' Association of An Giang province recently introduced a tour package entitled 73 Hours in That Son (Seven Mountains), which gives tourists an introduction to typical farming practices and families in the locality.

Last year, 13,000 tourists including 600 foreigners took the tours which involved them in local life, such as farming, fishing, cooking and listening to traditional music.

In the previous year, with support from Dutch farmers, An Giang announced an investment of 18.4 billion VND (0.86 million USD) for agriculture tourism development in the province.

Farmers of 15 communes in the province registered to participate in the programme. Each commune now has five to 10 families involved in tourism services.-VNA